long story. Short version: i had my oil pump in and out... its a reman w/ low miles. Insp[ect it, reassemble, install. Now i got 10PSI on startup. The pressure relief valve isnt sprung. When i reinstalled the oil pump, i had my distributor out. When i reinstalled, it was high.... I looked down at the drive gear, and tapped it down lightly w/ a brass drift and the dist. seated. What did I screw up?
The previous owner did a poor job of torqueing the heads, and after about...10 k miles,started overheating, bubbles. Thats when i found how off the head bolts were- anywhere from 40-65 ft/lbs. SO, i had the heads surfaced, reinstall, go 50 miles, and right at my driveway oil light comes on. a clatter. Seems like i screwed up and a pushrod wasnt correctly seated and it actually spit the lifter out in the bore. I didnt know, checked to see if the pump was working- thats how i came to take the pump out. A new pushrod and i put it all back together... now theres enough pressure to turn off the oil light, but the gauge i also got reads barely 10PSI, increase in RPM dosnt change it. I just took the oil pump out AGAIN and it turns...... any insight would be greatly appreciated.

What motor ?
if you had to Tap the drive gear down something was not right, like a bent shaft, misalignment of some sort

#1. When you have an oil pressure problem, Use an electric drill ( Corded preferred) to prime the pump, oiling system and check the pressure. Make sure to turn the pump the correct direction (CCW for big blocks, CW for small blocks)
#2 Do you know the gauge you're using is good ?
#3 Remove the distributor and try #1 above with a known good gauge.
#4 If the results are the same pull both valve covers and check for any other valvetrain / lifter issues.
#5 Report back

small block chrysler has no way to spin the pump in place- its driven by a gear off the camshaft. The sender WAS working... i got 2, one for the light, another for a gauge. .... i got the pump out, again- cant see any problem there. im gonna screw a mechanical pressure gauge into the oil pressure port. pulling the rocker boxes, too- see if theres oil puddled in the rocker arms. i just replaced a bent pushrod, a screwup on my part when i did the heads. I fix that, replace the PR and lifter, and now i got under 10PSI- enough to switch the light off, but not enough to budge the gauge........... i will report back.

Pull the shaft and get a priming rod. You can spin it with a drill. shaft

Apparently I've been mistaken for the last 50 + years and we have a new expert asking for help

Welcome aboard & ignore the rude comments (rarely happens here)

The only rude comment IMO was his response "has no way to spin the pump in place- its driven by a gear off the camshaft." One might have asked, "How do I do that as the pump is driven by a gear off the camshaft"

this is my first chrysler sb. dont know jack about them, beyomnd physical similarities. so, i ask questions. thats why this board exists, right? So you are saying i can extract that gear from above? I can lift it out w/ say... ling needle nose pliers, and then acess the oil pump drive? thats what I THINK is being said. am i right?

Yes. I have a large magnet on a handle I use. Mopar Performance used to sell a very nice priming rod.

i have a large, long screwdriver that i modified the tip on, to fit the oil pump drive gear slot perfectly. it fits both big and small blocks.
i stuff the driver in the distributor shaft, small crescent wrench on driver shaft, twist in opposite direction, drive gear and shaft unscrews from cam gear enabling you to use whatever you come up with to remove from the block.
years [and years ] ago, i made some plug wire removal tools using .156 stainless wire [formed in different "configurations"] and 7/8" nylon round rod for handles. those sneak around the cam gear when it is unwound from the cam gear, and i can pull the drive gear and shaft out easily, even if it has a little varnish and sludge buildup on the shaft.
just make sure you note the slot orientation so you can replace the drive gear back in its proper place in relation to the cam gear.

Then why did you not ask a question, but instead gave this know-it-all smart azz response?

"small block chrysler has no way to spin the pump in place- its driven by a gear off the camshaft"

my "smart ass response" was simply saying what i was looking at: the engaged gears. Im so stupid, i thought that gear would prevent me from getting to the pump drive. Now, one answer, above, has me doing things to remove a gear requireing unscrewing things, another says a strong magnet will do it. i dont get how im a smart ass for this, but whatever.
ill try the magnet trick. I cant picture how the other method is executed......Thank you very much.

It's not a straight cut gear, so if you turn it opposite of it's normal rotate it "unscrews" and comes up, then you can use a magnet to pull the drive to the pump. A 2 foot, or so, length of 5/16" hex stock will then fit into the oil pump drive allowing you to spin it with a drill, or speed wrench. CW for small blocks,, CCW for big blocks to drive the pump, opposite that to remove the drive.

Now if it were a slant six or a flat head six, you would be right in your assumption.

mille grazie!!!

The oil pump drive gear and shaft need to be installed correctly so you can get the distributor installed correctly so you can set the ignition timing correctly
I would buy a factory service manual for the year of that block so you can get all the factory correct torque spec, clearances, wiring, adjusting the throttle linkage and kick down settings for the tranny and so on and installing the oil pump drive gear and shaft correctly
As far as low oil pressure on Mopar oil pumps, BB and SB, remove the plug (drill a small hole in the center and use a sheet metal screw to pry it out with claw hammer or nail removal bar, weld the hole up and reuse that plug if you can't find or buy a new one) covering the oil pump bypass valve and see if it (the valve) is stuck partially open due to grit or debris
That or buy a new pump and try that
Good luck either way
Welcome to Mopar land and to all of us that harass the uninformed and newbies telling us to change us over to GM or Ford cars and parts
Chevy for breakfast, Fords for dinner

Here is what that looks like:

1) you see the helical cut gears on both the cam and the distributor/oil pump drive (that is the one sitting in the block)

2) the second photo shows the bushing that's pressed into the block that allows that shaft to rotate, that shaft slips into the hex drive on the oil pump itself on the one end, and on the top end (which is what the pics show) you see the slow in the middle of it (by the gear) where the distributor shaft slips in and uses a flat tang to be engaged with

So as Sniper pointed out, since these are helical gears and most likely your camshaft will not be free to turn (assuming engine is installed and all the valvetrain is hooked up: the timing chain is on, etc.) you will need to try to wiggle the darn shaft out, normally done by pulling up on it as you attempt to twist it, that will cause it to "ride up" on the camshaft gears and eventually pop out.

If by chance you have an old dist drive shaft, this works. Take off the gear (pinned on), find an old drill chuck key and the shaft will fit in the shaft slot. Slide over a piece of fuel line to hold it centered and put some electrical tape on it for good measure. Some oil on the bushing to prevent wear and you have a cheap primer.

Thaniks to the clear advice i got here, i got the drive gear/shaft out w/ really long needle nose pliers and a magnet, then fabbed up a long 5/16 hex driver- 1/4 in drive sections tacked together, spun it w/ a drill, and screwed a mechanical oil pressure gauge into the oil pressure switch port. It read 60psi in a blink. So....... it seems my electric oil puressure GAUGE sender failed the moment i replaced the bent pushrod/ejected lifter, and while the OP light went out when i fired it up, the op GAUGE read just 10psi. Coincidences like this can make wrenching..... interesting, to say the least. Well, due to all this ive had the pan off, thee pump out, and got a special tool and a way better understanding of this, my first sb chrysler. Fell free to get a good laugh out of this.....thanks to all.

Success! Me too I've learned to KISS, Keep It Simple Sam & cover the basic stuff first.